Chhattisgarh Court Denies Bail to Nuns, Citing NIA Jurisdiction

• A Chhattisgarh sessions court declined bail for Kerala-based nuns Sisters Preeta Mary and Vandana Francis, citing lack of jurisdiction as human trafficking charges fall under the NIA Act.
• The nuns, arrested in Durg on July 25 for alleged human trafficking and forced religious conversion, will remain in judicial custody and must approach the NIA court.

GG News Bureau
Raipur, 31st July: A court in Chhattisgarh has declined to hear the bail plea of two Kerala-based nuns, Sisters Preeta Mary and Vandana Francis, who were arrested in Durg on charges of human trafficking and forced religious conversion. The decision, citing jurisdictional issues under the National Investigation Agency (NIA) Act, means the nuns will remain in judicial custody and must now approach the NIA court in Bilaspur.

The arrests, which took place on July 25 at Durg railway station following a complaint by local Bajrang Dal member Ravi Nigam, have ignited a significant political storm, resonating from Kerala to Delhi. Both the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the opposition United Democratic Front (UDF) in Kerala, along with Christian community and Church leaders, and even the state BJP unit, have condemned the arrests and called for the nuns’ immediate release.

The nuns were reportedly accompanying three tribal women from Narayanpur district to Agra, where they were slated to receive training and employment at Fatima Hospital. The women and their families have categorically stated that there was no coercion for religious conversion and that they were traveling willingly as adults. The court’s decision not to entertain the bail petition has further intensified the political debate.

Kerala MPs staged protests outside Parliament, demanding the nuns’ release and accusing the Chhattisgarh government of targeting the Christian community. Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi from Wayanad condemned the alleged ill-treatment of the nuns, stating, “We are protesting an attack on minorities. Women should not be manhandled. We demand an end to such atrocities.”

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has also condemned the arrests as a “deliberate act of harassment” based on a “false complaint,” accusing the BJP and its ideological affiliates of prejudice against Christians. He remarked, “the same people who walk into Christian homes with cakes and smiles are now hunting down nuns.”

In contrast, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai and Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sharma have maintained that the investigation is proceeding strictly “as per due judicial process,” emphasizing the state’s commitment to the safety and dignity of its citizens. Interestingly, Kerala BJP chief Rajeev Chandrasekhar has expressed support for the nuns, attributing the arrests to a “misunderstanding” and asserting the party’s backing for them.

Christian organizations and leaders have also accused Bajrang Dal activists of assault and coercion. Cardinal Baselios Cleemis, Archbishop of Thiruvananthapuram, voiced the community’s concern, stating that the denial of bail made them “wonder what motivates these people to act in such a way,” stressing that leaders’ words and actions should not be contradictory.

The complaint against the nuns includes serious charges under Section 143 (trafficking of persons) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Section 4 (religious conversion) of the Chhattisgarh Religious Freedom Act, 1968.